IFEMA Madrid, congress and exhibition organiser and venue based in the Spanish capital, has reported revenues reached €177.6m in 2023. The business’s performance led to a 34.1% increase in EBITDA, which amounted to €27.3m and a net profit of €7.1m. The figures represented growth of 265.4% compared to the previous year.
In 2023, IFEMA Madrid’s facilities hosted a diverse range of 585 events, including 96 trade fairs and congresses, as well as 40 cultural and leisure events, and 445 conventions and professional events. Exhibitor numbers were up 59% and involved 33,978 companies, while 3.8m attendees passed through the doors, a 2.7% rise on the previous year’s figures.
The company is forecasting another rise in turnover for 2024 to €206m and anticipates hosting more than 700 events, 38,000 exhibitors and more than four million visitors.
IFEMA Madrid chairman Ángel Asensio said the past year had showcased “the remarkable ability of IFEMA Madrid’s excellent team of professionals. Their dedication and hard work have not only improved earnings from our current activities compared to previous years but also significantly enhanced profit and profitability”.
“The success of our major fairs, such as FITUR, ARCOmadrid, and FRUIT ATTRACTION, along with the development of new projects like the Christmas by STARLITEfestival in Madrid, have validated our Strategic Plan. This is a testament to our commitment to diversification, a commitment that will be further exemplified by future emblematic projects such as the F1,” the chairman added.
Internationalisation
IFEMA Madrid says it made a qualitative leap in its international expansion strategy in 2023, with four projects abroad. For the first time, it participated in a consolidated fair in Latin America together with Corferias, a leading trade fair organiser in Colombia, and PAFYC, ESS+ International Safety Fair of Colombia, under the powered by SICURumbrella, the great Spanish safety fair.
In addition, it ran its international projects ARCOlisboa in May, Motortec Chile in September, and Salon Look Madrid-Santiago in November, the latter two organised in collaboration with Espacio Riesco in Santiago de Chile.
In 2023, in the framework of the digital transformation strategy, IFEMA Madrid continued to promote its LIVE Connect platform as a key tool to enhance the experience of exhibitors and visitors at its fairs and events. It achieved a record attendance of 290,583 active visiting users.
The IFEMA Madrid website has also been updated with the main information, purchasing, accreditation, and ticket management tool and the company reports there were more than 13.7m users throughout the year.
IFEMA Madrid also reports environmental achievements, such as the reduction of the greenhouse gas emission ratio (carbon footprint) by 90.3% in the last seven years in scopes 1-2.; of electricity consumption by 27.2% compared to 2018; the natural gas consumption ratio was 42.4% compared to 2018; the total drinking water consumption ratio was 33.7% compared to 2018. The paper consumption ratio was 77.3% compared to 2018, and the waste generation ratio was 63.9% compared to 2018. In 2023, 79.1% of all waste generated was recycled.
